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Internet, LANs, and Telecommunications Issues
The science fiction world of the great Jules Verne struck audiences of his day as fantastic, unimaginable and completely impossible.
Today, much of our contemporary sci-fi literature seems not only possible but within reach of current technologies. With the
advances in open source, middleware, wireless and telecommunications capabilities, the benefits - and problems - facing libraries
today are as complex and intriguing as the technology itself.
THE INTERNET
“Everyone was afraid when the Internet was introduced that people would stop coming to the library, but that hasn't
happened.”(Spors, 2002)
In December of 1969, four computers at four different universities in the Southwest went online; within a year 15 sites were
established. Ethernet protocol appeared in 1974, based on a student’s dissertation on “Packet Networks”
and, along with TCP/IP, paved the way for wider use of the internet. (Young, 1998). Then, with the development of Tim Berner-Lee’s
proposal - a hypertext system linking text with other text – and the first user-friendly web browser developed by Marc
Andreeson, the internet began its metamorphosis into a technology embraced by millions.
The internet has been described as an ‘information tsunami’, and we have all experienced the feeling of ‘drowning
in a sea of information’ (The Curmudgeony Librarian).
The Web is made up of over a billion constantly changing pages (Williams & Sawyer, 2003); librarians and their patrons need
some means to sift through the profusion of rubble for each tiny nugget of gold.
Web browsers, such as Netscape, Internet Explorer, or Mozilla are the software programs that allow a computer to find and
view web pages. Most browsers, whether proprietary or open source, offer user-friendly features such as shortcuts to commonly
used sites, bookmarks to keep and organize favorite sites, and options to personalize a home page.
Search engines are intermediaries – they act as the middleman between the searcher and the computer that holds the information
sought. The search engine provides the user with hypertext links to other pages. By clicking on these links, a patron can
retrieve documents, multimedia and more from individual servers around the world (www.lib.berkeley.edu). There are different
types of search engines, and each has its own set of features. Depending on the information needed, a popular engine like
Google may work best, or the user may have better luck with a specialized search engine, or a search limited by subject matter
or geographic location, date, language, or domain. Search engines vary greatly in the results they produce. To investigate
different types of search engines, check the website www.searchenginewatch.com.
E-mail and listservs are also widely used internet services. Because of the prevalence of spam, pop-ups, viruses and other
bedeviling issues, institutions that provide public access must be cautious. A new spam filtering method, called ‘Bayesian
filtering’, is in development and shows great promise. In a recent test using over 8700 messages, this filter showed
99.984% accuracy in blocking spam while allowing valid e-mail (Moyer, 2004). The website http://spambayes.sourceforge.net
offers more information on this technology. Alternatively, companies like Postini and Brightmail offer very effective anti-spam
services, but they can be expensive. There are many sources for free software, but again, caution is recommended.
In addition to providing public access to the internet, librarians can also provide remote access to library services by creating
and maintaining their own websites. Thanks to advances in software, free tutorials at websites like www.webmonkey.com, and
a plethora of how-to books, anyone can maintain a presence on the web.
While some libraries allow access to services without restriction, others may restrict certain sites - often due to security
concerns. According to the ALA (2004), “issues of privacy and confidentiality are becoming far more complex and important
for our library patrons.” For patrons’ self-education, access to the Electronic Frontier Foundation can provide
information on privacy and other individual rights in the digital world.
For all libraries, security, censorship and privacy are hot-button issues. Finding a balance between privacy and security
is one of the key issues facing institutions today (Miller, 2004). Amid legislation like the PATRIOT ACT, CIPA and DMCA,
librarians and researchers must tread carefully to find their own balance – between service to patrons and adherence
to law, between budget needs and best use of funds, between rights of access to information and protection of children, between
copyright laws and freedom of expression.
NETWORKS
With the ever-increasing need for companies and employees to share information, networking has become an essential part of
everyday business. “At its most elementary level, a network consists of two computers connected to each other by a
cable so that they can share data.” (Networking Essentials, 1998) Without networks, sharing files would require that
files be copied onto disks and then physically transported to another computer. With new technology, computer networks allow
users to send, receive and share data in ways and at speeds not previously possible.
LAN
A LAN, or local area network, is a computer network that exists in a limited area - usually a building or group of buildings.
(Webopedia) There are two main types of LANs: peer-to-peer and client/server. In a peer-to-peer network each computer acts
as a client and a server. With a client/server network there is a dedicated server assisting all the computers in the network.
LANs are useful for sharing not only files but also peripheral devices such as printers, scanners or fax machines. The
same is true for software applications: one program can be purchased with a multiple user license and placed on a network
server for access by all users. (Lowe, 1998) Sharing files and information becomes much more efficient with a LAN; files
that are updated on a single workstation will be updated for all network users, increasing efficiency and preventing incorrect
or outdated information
Security is an imperative consideration when setting up your network. There may be confidential files, payroll information,
or personal information stored on the LAN that, without some security measures, would be accessible to everyone on the network.
Security is an issue for all networks, and especially for wireless LANs.
WIRED VERSUS WIRELESS
With recent advances in wireless technology, wireless networks have become more commonplace in businesses, universities, and
libraries. In a typical wireless network users are able to access the network through an access point or “hot spot”
connected to the wired network. The wireless access point can support about 12 to 20 users. To access the wireless network,
laptops must be equipped with a Network Interface Card (NIC) and users will need certain information like the Service Set
Identifier (SSID) of the access point. (Breeding, 2002) The laptops transmit data to the access point using a radio frequency.
Most wireless LANs are based on the IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) 802.11b standard (Boss, 2002)
Many people argue over the advantages and disadvantages of wired and wireless networks, but “a wireless network does
not stay wireless forever. Wireless LANs or WLANs eventually connect with the main network and the Internet through a wired
connection somewhere along the line”(Drew, 2003). However, a WLAN does offer a benefit that its hard-wired predecessor
does not: mobility. “This mobility and the attendant flexibility it provides to the computer user are what make a wireless
computing environment so attractive” (Drew, 2003). Students on a wireless campus have the ability to go from their dorm
room to the library to the cafeteria and be connected to the internet the entire time. Librarians can take a wireless laptop
with a barcode reader into the stacks to do inventory (Breeding, 2002). Wireless also allows librarians to create a mobile
computer lab, or to roam the library helping patrons.
But while a wireless LAN can help with productivity, it also has drawbacks. The wireless network has a limited range of about
300 feet, but the signal can be boosted for access from a school or library parking lot. “Breaking into wireless LANs
has grown into a hackers’ sport, often called ‘war driving’” (Breeding, 2002). Recent improvements
in encryption technology have led to improved security for wireless networks, but it is still important for libraries and
business to use a firewall to protect vital and private information.
Another drawback of the early wireless LANs is speed. Wired high speed LANs of today can transfer information at about 100-Mbps.
The most commonly used wireless networks transmit data at 11-Mbps. This speed is adequate for most email and web browsing,
but downloading larger multimedia files will take up a large portion of the available bandwidth and slow down all users on
that access point. The faster 802.11g wireless network with its 54-Mbps and the even newer Super G with its 108-Mbps, though
not yet widely used, will greatly increase wireless network speeds.
The cost question associated with wired and wireless networks varies on a case-by-case basis. Wireless networks can be difficult
and time consuming to design. Carnegie Mellon University spent six years experimenting and redesigning before deciding to
deploy wireless LANs campus wide (Boss, 2002). Access points can range in price from around a hundred dollars up to almost
a thousand and network cards can cost from forty dollars up to eighty dollars. On the other hand, if you are in an old building,
running more wires for additional workstations or wired network ports can be difficult and may incur higher labor costs.
As wireless networks improve their speed and security the popularity of WLANs will only increase. Libraries and education
centers would do well to integrate this technology to stay competitive. Though the wired LAN will continue to have its place
(if nothing else it will remain the underlying system that supports the wireless network), the increase in mobility and flexibility
that a wireless network provides is an exciting prospect. Be it mobile computer labs or spontaneous study groups, remote
cataloguing or mobile library assistance, the use of LANs and wireless LANs makes for a dynamic environment.
TELECOMMUNICATION
Communications has come a long way since the days of early cave paintings. Telecommunication is defined as “a science
that deals with communication -- usually used in plural.” (Merriam Webster) Though we have a definition of telecommunications,
it is much easier to define than to explain. An article in America City and Country describes this dilemma well: “there
is considerable debate about exactly what services the word “telecommunications” encompasses”. Telecommunication,
for the everyday PC user, concerns connecting and communicating digital information to and from the “outside”
world. Before the 1950’s, computing devices processed data into information, and communications devices communicated
information over distances, meaning that they were separate entities, performing separate functions (Williams & Sawyer, 2005).
This is now changing, according to Sawyer, with digital convergence - a fusion of computer and communication technologies.
Convergence is accomplished, on the most basic level, by a device that most computer users are familiar with: the modem.
MODEMS
A modem is short for ‘modulate/demodulate’; its purpose is to convert the digital signals produced by the computer
to an analog signal, and later to ‘reconvert’ the signal back to digital format to be accessed by another computer
(Williams & Sawyer, 2005). An analog signal “represents a continuous electrical signal in the form of a wave. A digital
signal is discontinuous, expressed as discrete bursts in on/off electrical pulses” (Williams & Sawyer, 2005).
CABLE MODEMS
The dial-up modem is likely to yield to the easier and faster cable modem. According to Weil, “more than 1 million
households in North America now have cable modem service, and the number may hit 1.6 million by year's end [1999], says a
researcher”. Cable modems are not connected to the net via telephone lines, as the traditional 56k modems, but rather
through a cable. If you want to connect more than one computer to the LAN, then you also need a router, which splits the
cable so 2-6 computers can connect at the same time. The access is non-stop, if your cable provider is a good one. Unlike
the traditional modems, cable is fast. According to Bass, “data blasts its way in at 256 kbps …I can download
a 5 MB file in less than 3 minutes and clutter my entire drive in an evening”. However, there are problems associated
with so many computer users switching to cable modems. If your area has many subscribers, you may end up sharing bandwidth,
which can greatly reduce you speed. And, according to Bass, bandwidth isn't all that you're sharing. “Like it or not,
when you use cable, you're on a local area network. I encountered four strangers when I opened my Network Neighborhood.”
Users should uncheck “File and Print Sharing” in the network settings, and should always have firewall protection.
Z39.50
What is Z39.50? According to Aruna, it is an “open communication protocol that specifies a standard of communication
between two systems for searching databases and retrieving information.” The Z39.50 standard “was developed to
share the bibliographical information electronically and to overcome the problems of database searching with many search languages”.
This means that librarians do not have to learn a new query language each time they go to a new server to retrieve information.
According to Aruna, there are two mechanisms that make Z39.50 work: “Client – called an ‘origin’ in
the standard, and Server – called a ‘target’ in the standard.”
The following figure illustrates how Z39.50 works:
DESIDOC Bulletin of Information Technology, 2001
In the lecture notes for Unit 6, Dr. Kim explains that not all library software is Z39.50 –yet - but Aruna’s conclusions
make an excellent argument for its implementation:
“The Z39.50 protocol not only rescues a librarian from learning different search interfaces for different databases,
it also helps the librarian to improve resource sharing among libraries by virtual union catalogue and ILL... The extended
facility of this protocol makes the ILL totally electronic i.e., it allows the system to arrange for delivery, including account
verification and billing, of an item to the enquirer. It provides 'broadcast searching’…Z39.50 also allows users
to specify a search statement to be saved and run at intervals. This greatly helps the librarian in providing the SDI service”.
David Penniman, Dean of the School of Informatics, University at Buffalo, NY, said
"In order for the library to remain what it is, it must change. If it doesn't change it will not remain what it is."
WORKS CITED
Aruna, A. “Z39.50: An Information Retrieval Protocol.” DESIDOC Bulletin of Information Technology 6 November
2001. http://www.firstsearch.oclc.org
4 August 2004.
Barker, Joe. “Things to Know Before You Begin Searching.” What are you really searching? July 27, 2004 UC Berkeley
Library http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/TeachingLib/Guides /Internet/ThingsToKnow.html. 2 August 2004.
Bass, Steve. “Cable Modems: Nice Net If You Can Get It.” PC World June 1999 http://www.pcworld.com/resource/article/0,aid,10576,00.asp.
4 August 2004.
Boss, Richard W. “Wireless LANs” ALA American Library Association June 2002: 1-5. http://www.ala.org/ala/pla/plabpubs/technotes/wirelesslans
.htm. 28 July 2004
Breeding, Marshall. “A Hard Look at Wireless Networks.” School Library Journal Summer 2002: Vol. 48 Issue 8, p14,
4p, 1c. EBSCOhost. http://search.epnet.com. 25 July 2004.
Curmudgeonly Librarian website. Aug 2, 2004. Accessed July 31, 2004 www.geocities.com/curmudgeony_librarian/
Drew Jr., Wilfred (Bill) “Wireless Networks: New Meaning to Ubiquitous Computing”. Journal of Academic Librarianship
March 2003: Vol 29 Issue 2, p102, 5p. EBSCOhost. http://search.epnet.com 24 July 2004
Lowe, Doug. Networking for Dummies. 3rd Edition. Foster City: IDG Books Worldwide, Inc., 1998
Merriam-Webster Online. http://www.merriamwebster.com. 4 August 2004.
Miller, Michael J. “Forward Thinking.” PC Magazine July 2004: 7.
Moyer, Michael. “Spam that Makes Your Computer Smarter Than You-Guaranteed!” Popular Science May 2004: 138-39.
Networking Essentials Second Edition. Redmond: Microsoft Press, 1998.
"Privacy Resources for Librarians, Library Users, and Families." ALA American Library Association. 2004. http://www.ala.org/oif/ifissues/privacyresources.
3 August 2004.
Spors, Kelly K. “Libraries Focus More on Upgrading Technology” Wall Street Journal.
10 Jan. 2002, Eastern Ed.: 1/10/2002, Vol. 239 Issue 7, pB8
Ursery, Stephen. “Bans on local telecom service are upheld: Supreme Court says states can outlaw such offerings”.
American City & County. 29 May 2004. http://www.firstsearch.oclc.org. 4 August 2004
Webopedia Online http://www.webopedia.com/ TERM/local_area_network LAN.html. 23 July 2004.
Weil, Nancy. “A Million Cable Modems in Use.” PC World 2 Aug 1999. http://www.pcworld.com/news/article/0,aid,12090,00.asp:
4 August 2004
Williams, Brian K., and Stacy C. Sawyer. Using Information Technology: A Practical Introduction to Computers & Communications.
6th Ed. New York: Mc-Graw Hill, 2005.
Young, Gray. The Reference Shelf: Internet. Vol. 70, No. 5: Wilson, 1998
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